“I should be able to. Making a large vat of Life Elixir is no different in difficulty than making a pot, it just requires more raw materials, as long as you have enough.” I’ve made potions in a large vat before, so I know.
“Alright, I’ll have my subordinates open the warehouse and bring out the stored medicine. What do you need?” the Knight Captain said happily. He had been troubled by the large number of injured soldiers who couldn’t be treated in time. With Life Elixir, many lives could be saved.
In reality, the survival rate this time was already extremely high because the penicillin I provided was made into a universal medicine by the Central Hospital and distributed, so the soldiers received timely treatment. Many who would have died from infected wounds were healed.
But it was still not enough. The damage caused by monsters was much more severe than usual. Many wounds were incurable or difficult to heal completely, especially with many reinforcements from friendly forces requesting priority treatment. Moreover, they were all powerful nobles who couldn’t be offended, which put a lot of pressure on the Knight Captain.
I stated a list of ingredients. The raw materials for refining Life Elixir were common and cheap medicinal herbs, but the required quantity was a bit large.
He ordered soldiers to open the warehouse and retrieve the medicine. However, the quantity was significant and would take some time. While waiting, the Knight Captain extended an offer to me.
“Miss Parul, you are truly the most intelligent person I have ever met. I can’t imagine a young girl possessing such profound wisdom. It’s a waste of your talent to be a commoner.”
“Cando City is currently gathering many great nobles. How about I recommend you to serve one of them? You can fully utilize your talents on a larger stage and will surely achieve great things in the future. I also believe those esteemed figures will recognize your exceptional abilities.”
After hearing the Knight Captain’s words, I couldn’t help but feel amused and exasperated. “Stop, stop, please don’t say anymore. I know you mean well, but it’s not for me. I’m accustomed to freedom and don’t like working under others.”
He doesn’t know that all my views, ideas, and methods come from my knowledge and experience from my previous life. It’s fine for me to offer suggestions or boast a bit, but I can’t handle actual management.
Putting aside other things, to give a simple example, I don’t even know how to balance accounts and can’t read ledgers. I’m completely ignorant of things like household registration, taxation, and official systems.
Then he said those important figures would recognize my abilities. I wish they would become blind! My true identity is that of a witch from an evil cult. Can this identity be revealed in public?
The Knight Captain seemed to want to persuade me further, so I quickly interrupted him. “Speaking of which, I have an acquaintance I’d like to find. Is Little Elaine here?”
After returning from Green Town last time, Little Elaine officially joined the army and became a Citizen Cavalry. Unlike Older Brother Jayad, whose honorary position meant minimal presence, I insisted he participate in the campaign to train his abilities.
Before leaving, I informed the Knight Captain of Little Elaine’s identity, telling him that he was the son of Sir Elaine from Zono Bridge, who had his territory taken away due to persecution and had ended up here. I hoped the Knight Captain would look after him.
Of course, this “looking after” wasn’t about creating shortcuts for him to slack off, but rather to provide him with more training opportunities, ensure his safety, and prevent him from being bullied or ostracized in the barracks.
Stories of sons of knights being forced to wander due to their family’s downfall were common. The Knight Captain was used to them and felt empathy for Little Elaine’s plight, so he readily agreed to my request.
The Knight Captain is a righteous person, and I trust him with Little Elaine. However, the outer districts have been attacked continuously for the past few days, facing violent monsters. I’m a bit worried if his training has been going smoothly. Since the medicinal herbs haven’t arrived yet, I’ll go and see him.
“Okay, he’s in the barracks over there. He also engaged monsters last night and participated in a cavalry charge. He should be resting now. I’ll have a soldier take you there,” the Knight Captain said.
He then assigned a trusted attendant. “You, take this lady to the barracks to find Little Elaine. Just bring her to Little Elaine’s tent. Don’t ask any further questions.”
The Knight attendant was also puzzled as to why the captain would suddenly ask him to escort a young lady into the barracks to find someone, especially since he hadn’t seen them interact earlier.
However, as a loyal attendant, he knew when to keep silent. His superior had told him not to ask questions, so he walked up to me and said, “Miss, the Captain ordered me to guide you. Please follow me.”
I nodded and followed the Knight attendant towards the barracks. With him guiding me, entering the barracks was indeed easy. He led me to the camping area of the Citizen Cavalry.
There was a significant difference between the Citizen Cavalry’s camp and the infantry camp next to it. The infantry camp had tattered tents, each of a small size and somewhat dilapidated, with multiple people sharing one tent.
In contrast, the Citizen Cavalry enjoyed much better treatment. They each had a separate tent, all new. Furthermore, each tent was accompanied by hay and troughs for the warhorses to rest and feed.
As I walked along, I noticed many Citizen Cavalry had their own attendants and servants helping them maintain their armor and weapons, and managing their daily lives, behaving like formal knights.
However, this was not excessive. Many of these Citizen Cavalry were still covered in blood, with dust on their faces, and even damaged armor, clearly indicating they had just experienced a fierce battle last night.
If these elite cavalrymen were to handle equipment maintenance or other trivial matters themselves, it would undoubtedly greatly affect their rest, and consequently their combat effectiveness. To maintain full combat power, attendants were essential.
The Knight attendant led me to a tent and said, “Little Elaine is inside. Miss, I won’t disturb you any further.” He then turned and left.
In fact, I had already seen him. Little Elaine was sitting inside the tent, his armor completely off. The family maid he brought with him was bandaging his upper arm.
“Are you injured?” I asked as I entered the tent, having already noticed the bloodstains on his bandage.
“Ah? Miss Parul! What are you doing here?” Little Elaine quickly stood up, but seemed to wince in pain as he moved his wound.
“Sit down, you don’t need to stand. I just came to see how your training is going. Hmm, not bad…” I said, looking at his firm and well-built upper body muscles.
The previous Little Elaine gave the impression of a reckless hothead, impulsive and brash, but easily discouraged when faced with setbacks.
But now, after experiencing battle, he seemed much calmer, though also more exhausted.
